Patents protect an inventor's valuable Intellectual Property (IP). However, use of a patent attorney to file a patent application can cost $10K and up. After Peter learned how to write a patent application by working closely with a senior patent attorney, he is now able to do most of the work himself. Peter will discuss what he has learned about this process.
Peter has 12 issued patents, and has 22 outstanding patent applications for technologies including semiconductor interconnect systems, test and assembly methods, and electrostatic motors. One of the issued patents covers Pillar in Well, a unique type of flip chip connector. Peter will discuss this invention's cost and thermal advantages, as well as how he is marketing this and another patent for sale or license.
One of his outstanding patent applications is for an electrostatic motor that works by attraction and repulsion of charge. Torque is proportional to operating voltage rather than current, and this can lead to more efficient motors for industry, automobiles and other advanced applications such as UAVs and waterborne vehicles. Since there are no windings, there are no winding losses. High starting torque is an additional benefit for robotic applications. Peter's company Sysflex won an SBIR grant to pursue this motor technology. The research is sponsored by the Navy, and is targeted at restricted access drilling machines.
In November 2005, Peter won the Best of Conference Award at the 2nd International Wafer Level Packaging Conference in San Jose, CA, for his flip chip connector paper titled Repairable 3D Semiconductor Subsystems.